How to assemble an upholstered bed frame

• Allen key (supplied)
• Cross-head screwdriver
• Clean dust sheet or the box lid
• Torch for finding bracket holes

Before you start, lay everything out on a soft surface (the flattened box works) and check it against the parts list in your manual.

• Padded headboard
• Upholstered side rails and foot end
• Centre beam with support feet
• Slat roll or loose slats
• Bolts, washers and bracket covers
• Legs or glides

1. 1

   Step 1: Unpack onto a clean dust sheet and keep the upholstered parts face up, away from knives, tools and bare floor grit.

2. 2

   Step 2: Find the threaded inserts on the headboard and rails; they are often under a flap or a small cut in the fabric lining. Use a torch rather than pushing a screwdriver through the cloth.

3. 3

   Step 3: With one person steadying the headboard upright, bolt the first side rail to it finger-tight, then the second.

4. 4

   Step 4: Attach the foot end to both side rails, then go round every corner and tighten the bolts so the fabric panels meet neatly.

5. 5

   Step 5: Fit the centre beam between head and foot and screw its feet down until they touch the floor.

6. 6

   Step 6: Unroll the slat roll over the rails, or lay loose slats into their holders, and fix the ends as the manual shows.

7. 7

   Step 7: Screw in the legs or glides last, by hand, so they sit fully home and the frame is level.

8. 8

   Step 8: Lint-roll or brush off any marks from assembly before the mattress goes on.

• Using a power drill on the bolts, which can spin the inserts loose inside the padded frame.
• Dragging the finished bed across the floor, which tears the fabric at the feet and strains the corner joints.
• Forgetting the centre feet, so a heavy mattress bows the slats.